ARC received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you, Penguin Teen! Quotes used are from an uncorrected proof and may change in the finished copy.

"Everyone has at least one secret that'll break your heart."

And in the town of La Cachette, the self-proclaimed Psychic Capital of the World, those secrets are bloody and well-kept, despite nearly every resident having some sort of magic. That is, except for Grey, who lives in Little Rock with her father during the year and comes down to the most south you can get in Louisiana to visit her grandmother and friends for the summer— but ever since her best friend and twin flame Elora went missing six months ago without a trace, Grey's powers have been awakening, and the town she considers home hasn't been the same. No one is being honest with each other, and just when Grey thought she might get close to figuring it out, a mysterious blue-eyed stranger shows up that throws everything out of balance and starts raising questions about the town's dark history.

"How do you keep a secret in a town full of psychics?"
"You tell the truth. At least part of it."

One thing that really stood out to me about this book was the atmospheric setting and how vividly constructed the town of La Cachette was. I mistook the flowers on the cover for coral and the alligator for a tide pool rock, so I was expecting a coastal mystery when I started (no, I did not read the summary very closely and yes, I've scheduled an eye appointment). I was really surprised when the book dropped me into the Deep South bayou, but Ginny Myers Sain built the town in my mind from the ground up. Even when I was iffy on other elements of the story, I always had a clear image of the boardwalk, the gator pond, the houses, and areas like L'il Pass and Keller Island. This is, like I said, a very atmospheric book and perfect if you're craving an immersive summer mystery.

Despite this book coming out at the end of this month (Aug. 31, 2021), it was surprisingly tropey in a way I'd expect from a much older book. There is an odd love triangle with two boys who have very intense eyes, one being a childhood friend and the other being a new boy with strong powers; a lot of twins; a dead mother with a mystery surrounding her; a cast of magic kids (which I wish had been developed a lot more!); weather that matches the drama of the scene; and a predictable solution to the mystery of Elora's disappearance that involves... well, I'll let you read it.

However, there is a ton of back and forth and secrets revealed, so I did end up second-guessing myself a lot and getting really wrapped up in theorizing, especially during the final arc. I ended up being nearly exactly right from the beginning, but I still had fun reading this. I will say that this is one of those strange books where I feel like things are crawling at a snail's pace until something happens, and then I'm going a mile a minute, and then we're back to the slow crawl until something else happens. I believe my problems with the pacing came from the in-between parts feeling a little forced. The side characters and Grey's relationship with them felt underdeveloped compared to the love triangle going on, which was sad because I wanted more. I could feel the personality in the other Summer Children lying just below the surface, but there was a lot of mud in the way.

There are clear influences and old common tropes that might make you laugh a little bit, but overall I liked this debut and got through it pretty quickly. The ending is super dramatic and high-tension and the epilogue is VERY cheesy, but I look forward to seeing more of Ginny Myers Sain's work.

"Knowing is hard, but it's a thing you can survive. The not knowing will kill you in the end. It's the secrets that fester."

 ❧ 3 ★ 

ARC received from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Uh... wow.

Just, wow.

I would not have put a literal million dollars on Eighty Days being a debut. This story follows a pilot who wants nothing more than to fly until his path crosses with a thief who has a knack for radio operating. Set in the 20th century where an aviation empire seeks to control every country and citizen in the land, Jay has to find what freedom means for himself, and what he's willing to risk for it. This was a love letter to flight, resistance, and, well, love, and was the kind of book so good that my mind felt wiped after a finished the last page.

I barely know where to start. The story drops you right in the middle of Jay's world, at the beginning of the AVO's quest for domination, but I never felt lost or confused. The world builds itself up around the three main characters, Jay, Sable, and Fix, and weaves around their relationships with the AVO and each other. I loved how genuine they all felt as they developed, made mistakes, and found love. The dynamic art brought everything to life in a way that had my heart in my throat and yes, I sometimes cried just because of how beautiful it all was.

This queer historical romance will sweep you off your feet and take you to the skies, and I can't recommend it enough. Go! Go on! Preorder it! Request it! Get it at your library! Don't make me hit you with a broom! 

 ❧ 5 ★ 

ARC received from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is one of those lovely books that makes me sit back and consider, how do I actually rate books? Based on pure vibes alone, this might even be 4.5 or 5 stars for me, but compared to what I was expecting, this fell short. Maria Llovet's Eros/Psyche tries really hard to act like it has a strong plot when you read the back cover, but don't expect any strong worldbuilding or storyline. This felt more like a dream, like listening to your grandmother on her rocking chair as she tells an old story.

The Rose is the center of this story, a mysterious female boarding school with strict rules. While the back cover says the curses and spells happen at night, they are definitely happening in broad daylight. The story moves through Sara's first year at the academy and as the secrets build, tragedies strike, and student numbers dwindle, she and the key student, Silje, slowly fall in love. This book gets a 10/10 for sapphic witchy dark academia vibes, but this isn't a book you should go into expecting it to be what it says it is. Instead, you follow Sara from one hazy season to the next, as the secrets and rules and mysterium build, and you might walk away understanding nothing but the ending— but for me, I was alright with that. 

 ❧ 3.5 ★ 

ARC received from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Two high school friends, Wataru and Saeki, are bonded together by their love of movies. Though they aren't in the same class, bumping into each other at a DVD store sparks a tradition of hanging out and going to the theater together, until one day Saeki confesses his feelings for Wataru. Despite Wataru insisting the confession doesn't bother him, things slowly start to change between them as they spend their summer vacation going on trips to locations from their favorite movies.

My Summer of You was a fluffy, cute read, and I enjoyed this manga! It's perfect for the summer and I liked watching Wataru and Saeki find themselves and explore their relationship through their travels. There was a refreshing realism to their dynamic post-confession that I really liked to see, and while I think Saeki does make some frustrating decisions, I was ultimately happy with the end and I'll be keeping my eye out for the second volume. Though the final chapter might have seemed far-fetched, based on everything else that had happened I took it as a sign they were meant to be together. 😊

 ❧ 3.75 ★ 

ARC received from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

In the Clear Moonlit Dusk follows Yoi Takiguchi, a first-year high school student who's found herself in an interesting budding romance. With her masculine features, low voice, tall height, and cool personality, she's quickly assigned the 'prince' archetype and has a gaggle of squealing fans... but while she's very popular with the other girls in school, she has little to no experience with boys. Enter the school's second prince: Ichimura, a rich boy who's more delinquent than prince, but is the first boy to ever find Yoi beautiful!

I'm already a sucker for shoujo, but this volume had my heart from start to finish. The plot contains a lot of your typical points: the protagonist falling sick, a sudden downpour, the hero running into the heroine for the first meeting, but all of these had new lights shone on them by Yoi and Ichimura's interesting dynamic! I found myself rooting hard for this couple and I loved Yoi's shyness and Ichimura's sincerity despite his debonair attitude. I'm really looking forward to the continuation!

 ❧ 5 ★ 

ARC received from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I wasn't expecting this manga to capture my heart like this, but I'm obsessed! This manga is an adaptation of Yukito Ayatsuji's novel, The Decagon House Murders, in which a murder mystery novel club takes a trip to an island that was the site of an unsolved murder and arson. In tandem, the club members at the decagon house and a few members outside become wrapped up in solving the grisly mystery, but they soon discover they can't trust the "facts" of the case... much less each other, since someone seems to be playing a game with them all that might end with most of them dead.

I loved this story. I adore murder mysteries, and the idea of a club where each member takes on the name and style of a mystery writer interested me right off the bat. The character design and background art style perfectly set the mood for this story and I loved how the two storylines work together to slowly reveal what might have really happened the night of the island massacre. The side notes about each member's design and the author name they've taken on also added a lot to the story, and there was just so much I adored about this novel! I'm already in love with both Ellery and Van, and I would probably trade my soul for a physical edition of this volume. Everything here was done very well and I will absolutely be picking up the rest of this series. I can't recommend this enough to other murder mystery lovers!

 ❧ 5 ★